Bollywood actress Nushrat Bharucha does not believe in the “size zero” fad. She says the concept of fitness is more beyond having a size zero body type.

“Being fit does not mean one has to be a size zero. There needs to be a balance and one needs to understand what works for his/her body type and fix their own benchmark. Eventually it is all about how one feels on the inside, whether you are energized enough to survive the day and not feel too lethargic at any point,” the 33-year-old told IANS over an e-mail interaction.

After entertaining the audience with her acting skills in movies like “Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety” and “Pyaar Ka Punchnama”, Nushrat Bharucha has now joined international chef Vikas Khanna for his three episode web series called “Kitchen, Khanna and Konverstations”.

She got featured in the first episode of the show, where both the celebrities cooked healthy meals with the addition of Quaker Oats.

Nushrat Bharucha.

Sharing her fitness routine, Nushrat Bharucha said: “When I am shooting and when I am on the set, it depends on the film and what I am training for…my meals completely depended on what my trainer advised me to eat. Whether he tells me to follow a strict no carbs diet or an ‘only-fruits’ diet, I achieve results by sheer motivation. ”

She also stressed on the importance of meals in an individual’s daily life and also gave some health tips to youngsters.

“Eating is as important as eating right. I feel that millennials today are very pressed for time and are constantly on the go. I genuinely wish there were 42 hours in a day because I have so much work to do. Often when on the run, meals are skipped, and we feel that a meal skipped means we are not putting on any weight.

“But the truth is that it is a bad idea! However, we ignore that if we forget to eat during our meal times, we are ending up putting on more weight in the long run. So, eating regularly and the right food is equally and as important as your diet,” she added. (IANS)

The nemuri protein fights germs with its inherent antimicrobial activity and it is secreted by cells in the brain to drive prolonged, deep sleep after an infection. Pixabay

Researchers, including one of Indian-origin, have found a gene that acts as a direct link between illness and the need for more sleep.

In a study of over 12,000 lines of fruit flies, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania in the US found the single gene, called nemuri, that increases the need for sleep.

The nemuri protein fights germs with its inherent antimicrobial activity and it is secreted by cells in the brain to drive prolonged, deep sleep after an infection.

“While it’s a common notion that sleep and healing are tightly related, our study directly links sleep to the immune system and provides a potential explanation for how sleep increases during sickness,” said Amita Sehgal, Professor at the varsity.

Without the nemuri gene, flies were more easily aroused during daily sleep, and their acute need for an increase in sleep — induced by sleep deprivation or infection — was reduced.

Over expression of nemuri increased sleep in bacteria-infected flies and led to their increased survival compared to non-infected control flies. Pixabay

On the other hand, sleep deprivation, which increases the need for sleep, and to some extent infection, stimulated nemuri to be expressed in a small set of fly neurons nestled close to a known sleep-promoting structure in the brain.

Over expression of nemuri increased sleep in bacteria-infected flies and led to their increased survival compared to non-infected control flies.

Moreover, the researchers, in the study published in the journal Science, noted that an immune cell molecule — interleukin-1 (IL-1) — is implicated in human sleep. Pixabay

In response to infection, nemuri appears to kill microbes, most likely in the peripheral parts of the fruit fly body, and increases sleep through its action in the brain.